This invention pertains generally to handling request queues, and more specifically to a method and system for providing and handling a file based queue in environments incapable of accommodating Registry functions.
Digital imaging devices (“DID”) are complex machines that require administration attention. DIDs suitably include devices such as printers, fax machines, scanners, copiers, multi-function peripherals (“MFPs”), and other like peripheral devices. In the past, embedded systems for controlling and monitoring devices were deployed as firmware. Firmware is software stored in read-only memory (“ROM”) or programmable ROM (“PROM”) and is easier to modify than hardware but harder to modify than software stored on disk. Therefore, when embedded systems were implemented and deployed as firmware for specific microprocessors, changing the microprocessor often required that the software be significantly rewritten, and sometimes completely rewritten. As personal computers (“PCs”) became a practical platform for embedded systems, different operating systems (“OS”) could be used with the same hardware, while making available a great number of services specific to the OS. However, choosing from the available OS is not an easy task, as characteristics like stability, robustness, performance and cost must be considered. Although additional functionality is created by the OS, a change in OS still requires the rewriting of software to address changes in the operating system. While this is an improvement over firmware, it is still difficult to change from one OS to another.
Because DIDs are often capable of performing a variety of functions, DID controllers must have the ability to monitor the different types of jobs which the DIDs are capable of performing. Some operating systems, such as the Microsoft Windows family of OS, provide developers with a simple method of monitoring DID jobs. Different OS provide developers with different means for storing configuration settings. However, the means for configuring DIDs under one OS may be very different than the means for configuring DIDs under another OS. Due to this inherent problem associated with the configuration of devices for multiple OS, it would be preferable if there existed a portable and universal system and method for monitoring and organizing DID jobs which provided the same functionality when used with any OS.